Daily Yellowstone journal., 1887-12-13
RovGRS or THE PLAINS.
Asoting wild Horses I'm Australia Tho
steed Of the Pampas-A Question.

0noottng wild Horses IN Austrnhs -hne
steed Of the Pampas-A Question.
Very young students, in their first at
tempt at composition, often inform us
chat the horse is a useful animal. This
sweeping generalization is subject TO inn
portant notifications before it is accepted
in all communities. There are many
thousands of horses that toll not like
their noble progenitors, but go like the
wind where it listet.,, and are looked
upon as intolerabie nuisances in the civ
ilized regions they sometimes invade.
Our Austrahan friends, for instance. are
no lovers of the horse in his untamed
state, and some Of the colonies set price
upon his head. and do all they can TO
stimulate movements for his destruction.
Seven thousand wild horses were shot in
New South Wales alone in 1876. These
rovers of the plains play the mischief
with domesticated animals when they
come among them, and the colonists are
very much disgusted to observe with
what ease the noble horse relapses into
barbarism, and, forgetting his oats and
other comforts Of civilization, runs or
with his wild brethren who have not en-
joyed his superior advantages.
1t must be confessed that our horses
need the restraints imposed upon them to
prevent them from disgracing their an
cestors, who were certainly domesticated
when they were introduced into this
country. Years ago it used TO he the
custom in our southwestern territory to
brand the young stock, and even many
work animals, and turn them loose TO
shift for themselves for a year or two.
When thew were wanted they were al
ways as wild as Mexican mustangs. Mr..
Powell wrote a book on the lest methods
of tanning wild horses. The specimens
on which he exerted his talents as a
tanner were for the most part formerly
domesticated animals, who had forgot
ten all about their old restrains while
wandering over the plains of our south
western territory.
Travellers IN the western territories are
no longer in danger Of such irruption of
horse flesh as Murray describes in his
travels invNorth America" He not
only witnessed stampede Of thousands
of panic stricken horses. but the living
torrent swept along toward and over his
camp, trampling skins and dried meat
into the ground. knocking down some of
the tents and taking with them all his
horses except his riding mare, who vainly
struggled TO break her fastenings. They
still range, in much smaller herds than
formerly, on the plains of the upper
Colorado; but the wild horse, like the
buffalo, is disappearing before the ad-
vance of the white man.
In spite of the experience Of the Aus
traliars, many peoples, chiefly savage,
have been able to turn the wild horse to
good account. Hundreds of thousands
of Mexican mustangs have been reduced
TO seftitude. The wild horse of the
South American pampas, which three
centuries ago, only fifty years after the
horse was introduced from Europe, had
spread to regions as remote as Patagonia,
has been tanned by thousands, and has
become the useful servant Of Indian
tribes.
Eaturalists often discuss the question
whether there is now in the world such a
creature as an aboriginal. or truly wild
horse. We know very well that the wild
horses OF the western hemisphere are all
descendants of domesticated animals.
Where, then, is the aboriginal wild horse
to be found? The question will probably
never be settled. Mr.. j. ii. Steel, who
recently read an interesting paper on
"Wild Horses" before the Bombay Nat
ural History society, thinks the evidence
is in favor Of the existence Of the wild
horse in central Asia. Gesner, the great
authority ON zoology Of the Sixteenth
century, was of the same opinion, but the
evidence has often been questioned, and
the assertion cannot positively be made
that the wild horse Of the great noun
tam region which the Russians are now
exploring is not himself the descendant Of
ancient dome tcated animals.
Another question Of scientific impor-
tance as yet un,olved is whether two or
three years run on the pampas would
rejuvenate the average street car plug,
develope the latent sayagery Of his nat
ure and make wild horse of him. IL
the equine liberty and freedom from hu-
man restraint could achieve miracle Of
such proportions it would be very inter-
esting to know it.-New York Sun.